My 200 Favorite Games: 200-150

Because the dumb shit I do on my breaks at work has to mean something

200) Fable II. Lionhead Studios, 2008.

An  incredibly disappointing and incredibly enriching action-RPG. Often at the same time.

199) Star Wars: Bounty Hunter. LucasArts, 2002.

One of the least terrible prequel tie ins fights through some wonky controls to provide a straightforwardly satisfying action title.

198) Mortal Kombat. NetherRealm Studios, 2011.

A rebirth of the classic fighting game is constantly at war with its own self-seriousness.

197) Tony Hawk's Underground. Neversoft, 2003.

A surprisingly captivating story mode helps stave off extreme sports game fatigue in the last good Tony Hawk game.

196) Sunset Overdrive. Insomniac Games, 2014.

Vibrant art design and the slickest movement this side of Jet Set Radio save a sometimes incredibly unfunny Xbox exclusive.

195) Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. LucasArts, 2008.

The last LucasArts game of any quality to bear the Star Wars brand is a mirthless Stormtrooper killing simulator

194) DBZ: Budokai 2. Dimps, 2004

An incredibly slick fighting engine powers what was until recently the best Dragon Ball game of them all.

193) Sonic Adventure 2: Battle. Sonic Team USA, 2001

MUST. RAISE. A. CHAO,  Also some Sonic stuff I guess.

192) Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Infinity Ward, 2009.

Hey look, it's the exact moment Call of Duty became insufferable. Lance Henrikson is a cool villain, though.

191) Murdered Soul Suspect. Airtight Games, 2014.

One of the more unique games on this list has its own struggles to deal with, but is just charming enough to be worth recommending.

190) Assassin's Creed Brotherhood. Ubisoft Montreal, 2010.

Probably the best single Assassin's Creed location, Rome, plays host to a varied, fun game that gets in just on the right side of the series' decline.

189) Star Wars Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike. Factor5, 2003.

The last Rogue Squadron game suffers from some bloat and some wonky level design but still proves itself worth the effort.

188) Fable III. Lionhead Studios, 2010.

It was supposed to Peter Molyneux's magnum opus. It ended up being just pretty good.

187) X-Men Legends. Raven Software, 2004.

Who knew that a multiplayer dungeon crawler would be the best way to encapsulate the X-Men as a concept? Oh, everyone.

186) Advent Rising. GlyphX Games, 2005.

A charmingly original sci-fi IP that never picked up enough steam to get a continuation is still worth experiencing.

185) Resident Evil 5. Capcom, 2009.

The Resident Evil formula has yet to run thin in one of the more surprisingly fun cooperative games of last decade.

184) Lord of the Rings: The Third Age. EA Redwood Shores, 2004.

One of the last high profile classic turn based RPGs takes some questionable liberties with its source material but ends up being a worthwhile experience.

183) Castle Crashers. The Behemoth, 2008.

If there's a more straightforwardly enjoyable co-op side scroller, I've never played it.

182) Star Wars Republic Commando. LucasArts, 2005.

A harder-edged, grittier take on the prequels can't escape being a by the numbers shooter, but at least it's a good one.

181) Injustice: Gods Among Us. NetherRealm Studios, 2013.

NetherRealm's DC beat-em-up is more Mortal Kombat than Justice League Unlimited, but it has its moments.

180) Dead Space 3. Visceral Games, 2013.

When Dead Space 3 is good, it's the best of its kind I've ever played. When it's not, it's downright painful.

179) X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse. Raven Software, 2005.

One of the better examples of a sequel outpacing its predecessor that I can recall, XML2 is bigger, badder and smoother. It's a shame these games didn't continue.

178) Guitar Hero II. Harmonix, 2006.

The grand daddy of all music games hasn't aged as well as you'd think.

177) Soul Calibur II. Project Soul, 2002.

Probably my favorite fighting game of all time, SCII hits all the right spots, and very few of the wrong ones.

176) Pikmin. Nintendo, 2001.

A wonderfully inventive game that never really gets going after its initial premise.

175) Evolve. Turtle Rock Studios, 2015.

The makers of the first Left 4 Dead take that game's boss fights and extend themselves out to full game length. The result is great fun that wears thin sooner than it should have.

174) Star Wars Episode I Racer. LucasArts, 1999.

Maybe the only worthwhile thing to come out of the entire Phantom Menace experience is a rock-solid racing game with a lot of customization.

173) Quake III: Arena. id Software, 1999.

One of the most important online shooters in PC history is also one of the poorest aged games of it's kind that I can think of.

172) Hyrule Warriors. Omega Force, 2014.

Zelda + Dynasty Warriors is just a bizarre enough fit to work, despite all evidence to the contrary.

171) Brutal Legend. Double Fine, 2009.

Double Fine is nothing if not charming, and Brutal Legend is no exception, especially if you have any affection for wonky strategy games and heavy metal.

170) Soul Calibur IV. Project Soul, 2008.

I said before that SCII was my favorite fighting game, and it is, but this is a bigger and better game. There's also one of the stranger crossovers in history as Darth Vader and Yoda both show up for some fun.

169) Destroy All Humans!. Pandemic Studios, 2005.

A charmingly retro game that is one part homage to 50s UFO culture, one part clever action platformer never quite made the mark it should have, despite a few sequels.

168) Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. Neversoft, 2007.

The zenith of the music game genre was a guitar duel against Tom Morello, because of course it was.

167) Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance. PlatinumGames, 2013.

It's hardly the most intellectual continuation of the Metal Gear series, but damnit if slicing giant robots to death as a cyborg ninja doesn't just scratch a certain itch.

166) Eternal Darkness; Sanity's Requiem. Silicon Knights, 2002.

There hasn't been a game quite like this one before, and there probably never will be.

165) Star Wars Rogue Squadron. LucasArts, 1998.

The scope and smoothness of this game are remarkable now, and they were even moreso in 1998. A clean, straightforward, excellent game.

164) The Sims. Maxis, 2000.

The Sims is really weird, right? Just the strangest game. I don't have anything else to say.

163) Star Wars Battlefront. EA DICE, 2015.

Look at that screenshot. Look how cool it is. Unfortunately, that's about all this game is. It gets the basic concept of a Battlefront reboot right, but forgets to put an actual game around it.

162) Borderlands. Gearbox Software, 2009.

A fun, freeflowing game that feels more like a template for what came later in hindsight.

161) Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII. Square Enix, 2008.

There's a very specific mood that this game captures that I hope the FFVII remake can figure out.

160) Sleeping Dogs. United Front Games, 2012.

There's a lot to like about this game, chief among them the detailed setting and the excellent, excellent fighting system.

159) Massive Chalice. Double Fine, 2015.

A very strange mismash of different game types sometimes finds real traction, as long as its difficulty curve stays out of the way.

158) Banjo-Kazooie. Rare, 1998.

I can't think of a platformer that used the Nintendo 64s limited tech as well as this one. A wonderful little gem from Rare, the masters of the N64.

157) Dragon Ball Xenoverse. Dimps, 2015.

It's a simpler fighting game than the Budokai series but ends being much better simply for trying to do something with the source material.

156) DOOM 3. id Software, 2004.

On one hand, it's an incredibly misguided attempt to turn DOOM into something it's not. On the other, it's a greatly evocative and important game from a design standpoint.

155) Halo Wars. Ensemble Studios, 2009.

A refreshingly simple strategy game enlivened by good use of a clean looking Halo tie in.

154) Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3. Neversoft, 2001.

The best of all skating games, now and forever. Also the best soundtrack.

153) Hitman Blood Money. IO Interactive, 2006.

A shockingly inventive game considering both the general limitations of stealth in the mid-2000s and how early in the console generation it came.

152) Assassin's Creed II. Eidos Montreal, 2009.

The pinnacle of the Assassin's Creed series by a large amount. The most varied and interesting game to ever bear the name.

151) Final Fantasy XIII. Square Enix, 2010.

I have some very conflicting thoughts. FFXIII is beautiful to look at, at sometimes beautiful to hear. The combat system is one of the few refreshing ideas the company has had lately. It's also agonizingly slow and some of the characters are miserable.

150) D4: Dark Dreams Don't Die. Access Games, 2014.

SWERY is a weird fucking guy. This is a weird fucking game. I liked it, though.

Second part here

The Five Best Bulls at Every Position Since 2000

Since I suffered my way through a Cubs version of this, here's the Bulls one, which is even worse!


Center
1. Joakim Noah, 2007-2015   (6.1 VORP in 13-14)
2. Ben Wallace, 2006-2008  (5.2 VORP in 06-07)
3. Tyson Chandler, 2001-2006 (2.8 VORP in 04-05)
4. Brad Miller, 2000-2002, 09-10  (1.6 VORP in 01-02)
5. Kurt Thomas, 2010-2011   (0.9 VORP in 10-11)

Honorable Mention
  Omer Asik, 2010-2012
  Antonio Davis, 2004-2005
  Eddy Curry, 2001-2005


Power Forward
1. Elton Brand, 1999-2001  (3.0 VORP in 00-01)
2. Pau Gasol, 2014-15   (3.2 VORP in 14-15)
3. Donyell Marshall, 2003- 2004   (2.3 VORP)
4. Nikola Mirotic, 2014-15  (1.5 VORP)
5. Taj Gibson, 2009-2015  (1.2 VORP in 14-15)

Honorable Mention
    Carlos Boozer, 2010-2014
    Tyrus Thomas, 2006-2010
    Othella Harrington, 2004-2006


Small Forward
1. Luol Deng, 2004-2014    (3.6 VORP in 06-07)
2. Kyle Korver, 2010-2012   (1.7 VORP in 11-12)
3. Mike Dunleavy, 2013-2015  (1.8 VORP in 13-14)
4. Andres Nocioni, 2004-2009  (1.7 VORP in 05-06)
5. Ron Artest, 1999-2002   (1.0 VORP in 00-01)

Honorable Mention
    Jalen Rose, 2001-2004
    Eddie Robinson, 2001-2004
    Eric Piatkowski, 2004-2006


Shooting Guard
1. Jimmy Butler, 2012-2015    (4.2 VORP in 14-15)
2. Ben Gordon, 2004-2009    (2.4 VORP in 06-07)
3. Jamal Crawford, 2000-2004   (2.2 VORP in 03-04)
4. Ronnie Brewer,  2010-2012  (1.7 VORP in 10-11)
5. Fred Hoiberg, 2000-2002   (1.7 VORP in 00-01)

Honorable Mention
    Thabo Sefolosha, 2006-2009
    Keith Bogans, 2010-2011
    Larry Hughes, 2008-2009


Point Guard
1. Derrick Rose,  2008-2015   (6.0 VORP in 10-11)
2. Kirk Hinrich, 03-11, 13-15   (3.5 VORP in 06-07)
3. Nate Robinson, 2012-13    (1.9 VORP)
4. DJ Augustin,  2013-14   (1.4 VORP)
5. Jay Williams,  2002-2003   (-0.1 VORP)

Honorable Mention
    Chris Duhon, 2004-2008
    CJ Watson,  2010-2012
    Jannero Pargo,  03-06, 08

The Five Best Cubs at Every Position Since 2000

In lieu of studying for my finals (and because the 2015 Cubs are exciting as shit), I decided to try and put the current young Cubs in proper context with their forebears, and since my pre-2002 or so Cubs knowledge is shaky at best (I turned 13 in 2002 and honestly wasn't a huge sports fan until then), I'm just going with the logical cutoff. I'll throw five guys at every position, but I'll make note of others worthy of at least mentioning. For guys who declined over their Cubs tenure, I'll just consider their best season as their entry, with their other years listed. This is going to be depressing.



Catcher
1.  Geovany Soto, 2007-2012 (3.7 WAR in 2008)
2.  Miguel Montero, 2015
3.  Welington Castillo, 2010-2015 (3.1 WAR in 2013)
4. Michael Barrett, 2004-2007 (2.9 WAR in 2005)
5.  Dioner Navarro, 2013 (2.0 WAR)

Honorable Mention
 Jason Kendall, 2007
 Henry Blanco, 2005-2008
 Todd Hundley, 2001-2002
 Joe Girardi, 2000-2002
 Damian Miller, 2003


First Base
1. Derrek Lee, 2004-2010 (7.0 WAR in 2007)
2. Anthony Rizzo, 2012-2015 (5.6 WAR in 2014)
3. Mark Grace, 2000 (3.0 WAR)
4. Carlos Pena, 2011 (2.5 WAR)
5. Fred McGriff, 2001-2002 (2.4 WAR in 2002)

Honorable Mention
 Bryan LaHair, 2011-2012
 Hee-Seop Choi, 2002-2003
 Matt Stairs, 2001
 Daryle Ward, 2007-2008
 Ron Coomer, 2001


Second Base
1. Mark DeRosa, 2007-2008 (4.2 WAR in 2008)
2. Eric Young, 2000-2001 (3.6 WAR in 2000)
3. Mark Bellhorn, 2002-2003 (3.9 WAR in 2002)
4. Mark Grudzielanek, 2003-2004 (2.3 WAR in 2003)
5. Darwin Barney, 2010-2014 (2.4 WAR in 2012)

Honorable Mention
 Emilio Bonifacio, 2014.
 Todd Walker, 2004-2006.
 Mike Fontenot, 2007-2010.
 Bobby Hill, 2002-2003
 Arismendy Alcantara, 2014-2015


Shortstop
1. Starlin Castro, 2010-2015 (3.1 WAR in 2012)
2. Ryan Theriot, 2005-2010 (3.0 WAR in 2008)
3. Nomar Garciaparra. 2004-2005 (1.1 WAR in 2004)
4. Alex Gonzalez, 2002-2004 (1.0 WAR in 2002)
5. Ricky Gutierrez, 2000-2001 (1.8 WAR in 2001)

Honorable Mention (begins vomiting)
 Neifi Perez, 2004-2006
 Cesar Izturis, 2007
 Ronny Cedeno, 2005-2008
 Augie Ojeda, 2000-2003
 Ramon Martinez, 2003-2004


Third Base
1. Aramis Ramirez, 2003-2011 (4.8 WAR in 2007)
2. Kris Bryant, 2015
3. Bill Mueller, 2001-2002 (2.3 WAR in 2003)
4. Luis Valbuena, 2012-2014 (2.8 WAR in 2014)
5. Jeff Baker, 2009-2012 (1.6 WAR in 2009)

Honorable Mention
 Jose Macias, 2004-2005
 Cody Ransom, 2013
 Mike Olt, 2014
 Jake Fox, 2007-2009
 Donnie Murphy, 2013


Left Field
1. Alfonso Soriano, 2007-2013 (6.7 WAR in 2007)
2. Moises Alou, 2002-2004 (5.9 WAR in 2004)
3. Matt Murton, 2005-2008 (2.8 WAR in 2006)
4. Chris Coghlan, 2014-2015 (2.3 WAR in 2014)
5. Tyler Colvin, 2009-2011 (1.8 WAR in 2010)

Honorable Mention
 Rondell White, 2001-2002
 Tony Campana, 2011, 2012
 Reed Johnson, 2008-2009, 2011-2012
 Brian Bogusevic, 2013
 Micah Hoffpauir, 2008-2010


Center Field
1. Kenny Lofton, 2003 (2.1 WAR in 56 games)
2. Marlon Byrd, 2010-2012 (4.0 WAR in 2010)
3. Corey Patterson, 2000-2005 (5.0 WAR in 2004)
4. Juan Pierre, 2006 (3.1 WAR)
5. David DeJesus, 2012-2013 (2.1 WAR in 2013)

Honorable Mention
 Dexter Fowler, 2015
 Jim Edmonds, 2008
 Angel Pagan, 2006-2007
 Sam Fuld, 2007-2010
 Ryan Sweeney, 2013-2014


Right Field
1. Sammy Sosa, 2000-2004 (9.9 WAR in 2001)
2. Kosuke Fukudome, 2008-2011 (2.4 WAR in 2009)
3. Nate Schierholtz, 2013-2014 (1.8 WAR in 2013)
4. Jeromy Burnitz, 2005 (1.5 WAR)
5. Jorge Soler, 2014-2015

Honorable Mention
  Jacque Jones, 2006-2007
  Cliff Floyd, 2007
  Todd Hollandsworth, 2004-2005
  Milton Bradley, 2009
  Dave Sappelt, 2012-2013


Starting Pitcher
1. Mark Prior, 2002-2006 (7.9 WAR in 2003)
2. Kerry Wood, 2000-2008, 2011-2012 (4.3 WAR in 2004)
3. Jon Lester, 2015
4. Carlos Zambrano, 2001-2011 (4.9 WAR in 2003)
5. Jake Arrieta, 2013-2015 (5.1 WAR in 2014)
6. Ryan Dempster, 2004-2012 (4.8 WAR in 2008)
7. Matt Garza, 2011-2013 (5.0 WAR in 2011)
8. Ted Lilly, 2007-2010 (3.9 WAR in 2007)
9. Greg Maddux, 2004-2006 (3.4 WAR in 2005)
10. Jeff Samardzija, 2006-2013 (2.9 WAR in 2012)

Honorable Mention
 Jon Lieber, 2000-2002, 2008
 Matt Clement, 2002-2004
 Rich Hill, 2005-2008
 Rich Harden, 2009
 Randy Wells, 2009, 2012



Relief Pitcher
1. Hector Rondon, 2013-2015 (1.6 WAR in 2014)
2. Carlos Marmol, 2006-2012 (2.8 WAR in 2010)
3. Joe Borowski, 2001-2004 (1.8 WAR in 2013)
4. Kyle Farnsworth, 2000-2004 (2.1 WAR in 2001)
5. Sean Marshall, 2006-2011 (2.6 WAR in 2011)

Honorable Mention
 James Russell, 2010-2013
 Bob Howry, 2006-2008
 Will Ohman, 2001-2007
 Antonio Alfonseca, 2002-2004
 Pedro Strop, 2013-2015

A Tribute to Shadow of Mordor's Nemesis System

Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, the relatively new game from Monolith Studios, has received some rave reviews since its release in late September. While the combat is good, it also plays like a more forgiving, more skittish and jumpy version of the the Batman: Arkham series' finely-tuned counter fest. While the open-world exploration is also good, it plays like a less intensive version of the Assassin's Creed series' signature parkour. And while the story is good (and features probably the closest thing to an adaptation of the Silmarillion that we're ever likely to see), one can be excused from not being all that interested in Lord of the Rings lore.

No, what makes Shadow of Mordor fun and quite unlike anything I've played in recent memory is the Nemesis System. The game's protagonist, bland ranger person Talion, is killed at the story's outset and bonded to a mysterious wraith that keeps him "banished from death." Basically, whenever he dies, he is resurrected. What is interesting about this mechanic is what happens to the Orc or Uruk who kills him: if a random grunt manages to land the finishing blow, he will be promoted to Captain and take his place in a chess board-y "Sauron's Army" menu in the game, displaying all the current captains, their locations and their battle tactics. If the board is full, the new captain will challenge and incumbent for the position. If they win, they get promoted. If not, they die. What gives this mechanic flavor is that almost every one of these Orcs will be randomly generated from a set list of names, appearances, characteristics and voices, and they all remember their previous encounters with you. If one defeated you, he'll taunt you the next time you meet, referencing how he killed you, if you ran, if he ran or even just generally talk about weird shit and how much he wants to bathe in your blood.

I told you all of this to tell you the story of an Orc named Hoshu the Wrestler, and how he and I came to be the bane of one another's existence. Soon after the story proper began, I decided to start exploring the open-world a bit before diving into story missions. In doing so, I discovered a few captains and, ahem, interrogated their underlings for information about their strengths and weaknesses. In the middle of an interrogated a particularly terrified looking Orc, I was interrupted by a scrawny Orc captain named Hoshu. He barked something unremarkable about killing me. I saw the power level the game ascribed to him: 11. Not a pushover. Still, I wasn't going to take any chances. We started fighting, and I realized that he couldn't be countered. He knocked me down a few times and I fled, confused and unsure of how to best him.

Maybe an hour later, I was doing a side mission to power up my bow, one that I thought was detached from the rest of the open-world, as these sorts of side missions tend to be. Stuck in a ramshackle tent on a plateau between two groups of archers who had my name carved into their arrows, I started my grim work. After a few enemies fell, who should appear RIGHT BEHIND ME but Hoshu, the Wrestler, now sporting a wide-brimmed steel helmet and a cockier attitude. Living up to his name, he grabbed and threw me off the plateau, and before I could escape his throng of underlings, he vaulted from above and crushed me in one blow. It was my first death, and I was confused. Hoshu, the Wrestler was now level 12.

Interested, I used the minimap to look for some hint of Hoshu, finding him in one of the game's larger settlements trying to recruit supporters. I snuck my way through the outpost, finding the highest vantage point I could and fired a few arrows of glorious retribution into Hoshu's face. After a few hits, he noticed me and fled. I gave chase as best I could, avoiding his troops until I finally cornered him just outside of town. Avoiding his powerful melee attacks, I whittled his health down until I was FINALLY able to grab and interrogate him. Just as I was about to probe his mind before destroying it, someone hit me from behind and broke my hold. I turned around and dealt with a few brave underlings before realizing that Hoshu had straight up vanished. Sure enough, after my subsequent death, there he was on the update screen, taunting me and leveling up his power. Now he was level 13.

After reviving and using some of the currency I had earned to buy some upgrade, I set out on the warpath. Using the minimap to pinpoint Hoshu's position, I found him in the midst of an "ambush" side mission, where several jealous underlings attempt to assassinate a superior. Staying out of the fray, I peppered Hoshu's supporters with arrows until he stood alone against a half dozen angry usurpers. I took no small amount of glee in watching him stand alone before he dealt with his assailants. Suddenly, the game updated that in surviving his assassination attempt, Hoshu was now level 15. Then he escaped. Now he was level 16.

We'd had four encounters: one that he ran from, one that I ran from, one that he definitively won and one that he'd scurried away from by the skin of his teeth. I was PISSED. Next time I spawned, I made a beeline for his last position, only to find that he was simply gone. I looked for awhile, then decided to just carry on with the main game as best I could. After doing a mission for Gollum (yes, that Gollum), I was doing a little exploring in my new area and collecting some collectables. A lowly captain attacked me, and was dealt with. Just after I dealt the finishing blow, Hoshu burst onto the scene, snarling revenge and toting a cadre of 10 or so tough-looking dudes with shield. It started raining. It was ON. I tore through Hoshu's men like fire and vapor, flipping and dodging and using my newly acquired ground pound technique to dispatch everyone I saw. After a few exhausting minutes, Hoshu fled again, his health down to the lowest I'd yet seen it. Determined not to let him go again, I vaulted on top of a nearby ruin of sorts and put an arrow through the back of his head from distance. Finally, it was over. I made sure my game had saved, turned off my Xbox and went to sleep.

The next time I played, I was back at that area trying to scavenge the collectibles I'd missed last time, when Olrok the Collector, a sadistic, hedonistic slab or Orc I'd also been having tussles with shuffled his purring visage onto my screen for revenge. Suddenly, in the middle of fighting two captain, Hoshu re-appeared, filled with furious anger and toting a steel plate over one of his eyes, a trophy from our previous encounter. I turned and ran straight at him, ignoring Olrok, who was trying to flee. I fought him again, now level 17 due to his miraculous survival, and again he fled. The tide had turned in our rivalry. He tried to escape, and I put another arrow into his head, only this time, nothing happened. He was immune to ranged attacks now, the game told me. He was learning. Also, he was faster than I was, and he was escaping. Suddenly, as he ran down the craggy slopes, a Caragor, a sort of mounted annoyance that can be tamed, tackled Hoshu. The game updated to inform me of his fear of Caragors, and I the beast tossed him around like a ragdoll, I moved in for the kill. I picked off a couple encroaching Caragors and waited until Hoshu was near death, then intervened, dispatching the hunter and the hunted in mere seconds. I am become death, and Hoshu was dead once more.

Earlier today, when I picked my game back up after not having seen Hoshu for, at this point, several hours of gametime, I was presiding over a duel between two Orc captains. One, a fat bastard named Narug the Mountain, and the other Gorgum the Grim, who had killed me as a lowly grunt. Narug was the higher level, and I like Gorgum, since his grimness always led him to spout pessimistic drivel every time I saw him. He was this game's version of Eeyore. After I helped Gorgum win his duel, he fled at the sight of me, and while I considered letting him go or not, I was attacked from behind by a filthy looking masked Orc. At this point in the game I had unlocked a last stand sort of mode that let me counter my murderer's final strike into a killing blow of my own. As I killed this random usurper, I thought to myself "that guy looked sort of interesting. Too bad he didn't kill me and become the new Hoshu." Having decided to kill poor Gorgum the Grim, I set off after him. He's not too fast and not too good, so catching him would be easy. I didn't make it ten seconds before the masked Orc attacked me again, despite having just been cut down. This second attack did a titanic amount of damage, and as I crumpled down into the grass, I heard the Orcs around me chant a single name, over and over: Hoshu. I couldn't block the final blow this time and after reviving, I went to the Sauron's Army screen, and this is what I found.

Hoshu, the Wrestler. Legendary Captain, Power Level 20. "Seething with hatred for Talion. Eager for a chance to meet him again." The feeling is mutual, buddy.

That motherfucker. I can't wait to fight him again. We've got a score to settle.

UPDATE: Soon after posting this, I got a notification that Hoshu was hosting a feast in his own glory near the beginning area of the game. Remembering how spread out that place could be, I hastened there to plot my revenge. Remembering his fear of Caragors, I captured one, rode it to his feast and hid. After a couple minutes of watching his patrol route, I snuck up behind Hoshu and poisoned his grog. After he and his men were weakened, they began to fight, and though it took awhile, Hoshu eliminated his entire group, though it left him with less than half health. It was then that I struck.

Mounted on my Caragor, I rode after Hoshu like death, he fled in terror, which negated most of the skills that had made him unkillable. I ran him down and let my Caragor tear into him. After barely surviving, I grabbed him, read his mind and broke it. He crumpled to the ground, seemingly dead. I expected him to return. He never did. An anticlimactic ending to our rivalry, perhaps, but one that showed just how far I had ascended above petty conflicts such as the one with Hoshu. Later, near the game's conclusion, I was even more powerful, commanding a brainwashed Uruk army of my own. There had been other Uruks designated as my nemesis since then, but none of them had the lasting power of Hoshu. I had grown far too powerful, capable of felling lesser captains in a single blow. Now, when I defeated one, they never came back.

 When I moved on the castle belonging to one of the main bosses of the game, I was stopped at the gate by a small army of opposing Uruks. Leading them, was Hoshu, the Wrestler. Somehow back even after having been dead now longer than he had been alive in the first place. "Defeat your nemesis," the game told me, and I did. Hoshu tore into my own brainwashed captains, eliminating three of my five lieutenants before I could cut my way to him, and when I did, I fell upon him in a righteous fury, finally removing from him both his head and his life, for the final time. There was a short boss fight against one of the storyline antagonists, but it lacked the sense of finality Hoshu's death had finally given me. The game ended not long afterwards, and after it did, I barely did any of the sidequests opened up for me in the open world. My purpose had been fulfilled, as had Hoshu's. Glorious vengeance had been fulfilled.

What a fun game.